You can't write music right [...] until you know how the ma… - Duke Ellington

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You can't write music right [...] until you know how the man that'll play it plays poker.

Duke Ellington

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About Duke Ellington

Edward Kennedy Ellington (April 29, 1899 – May 24, 1974) was an American jazz composer, pianist, and band leader. Although a pivotal figure in the history of jazz, in the opinion of Gunther Schuller and Barry Kernfeld, "the most significant composer of the genre", Ellington himself embraced the phrase "beyond category", considering it a liberating principle, and referring to his music as part of the more general category of American Music. TOC

Also Known As

Birth Name: Edward Kennedy Ellington

Also Known As: The Duke • Dumpy

Alternative Names: Duke Elington • Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington • Mood Ellington

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Originators like Duke Ellington:

Miles Davis Clare Fischer Charles Mingus Chris Martin Andrew Sega

Additional quotes by Duke Ellington

My band is my instrument more than the piano.

Roaming through the jungle of "oohs" and "ahs," searching for a more agreeable noise, I live a life of primitivity with the mind of a child and an unquenchable thirst for sharps and flats.

Fate is being kind to me. [...] Fate doesn’t want me to be too famous too young.

You can't write music right [...] until you know how the man that'll play it plays poker. - Duke Ellington

About Duke Ellington

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